Posted by James Pepper on March 25, 2000 at 16:25:21:
In Reply to: Re: Pitch Pine for Bruce posted by Bruce Beveridge on March 25, 2000 at 15:30:36:
I remember the pitch pines in New Jersey when I lived up in New York, I would suggeet a tree native to Europe called Pitch Pine, since the New Jersey trees are not made for lumber. Chances are the lumber came the mainland of Europe, probably Poland, Germany or France. We would need a European variety. I remember a "This Old House" where they were talking to a manufacturer of flooring in Finland, and he refered to the pine floors giving a name common to a US type of tree, and it may have been the pitch pine, but the wood grain and tree were definitely not the American type.
On the other hand, pitch pine could have been used in smaller pieces, odd shaped lots, but from what Bruce says are on the plans it sounds like planking to me. Down South we have Osage Orange, or Boes Dark or the Iron Wood tree,or the horse-apple tree, it has many names, but its wood is so strong that you will ruin a buzz saw blade on just one tree. It grows in odd shapes, but its lumber was used to build the keel of the USS Constitution. They used some trees that were blown down in Charleston to replace a section of the keel when they refitted the Constitution.
My knowledge of trees comes from my being involved in breeding experiments to save the American Dogwood tree from extinction due to an infestation of a disease. I located a disease resistant rootstock.
James Pepper